Washington and the Members of Congress then marched in a procession to St. Paul's Church for Divine Service. That Congress should have gone to church en masse as a part of the inauguration was no surprise, for Congress had itself prepared these inaugural services. That is, while the new Constitution had established the presidency, it stipulated nothing particular about the first activities. It was therefore in the authority of Congress to help direct those activities. The Senate thus acted :
Resolved, That after the oath shall have been administered to the President, he - attended by the VP and members of the administration of representatives - go on to St. Paul's Chapel to hear Divine service. The House quickly authorized the same resolution. Once the presidential oath had been administered and the inaugural address delivered, according to official congressional records :
The President, the VP, the Senate, and House of Representatives, &c, then proceeded to St. Paul's Chapel, where Divine Service was performed by the chaplain of Congress.
Paul's was conducted by The Right Reverend Samuel Provoost - the Episcopal Bishop of New York, who had been selected priest of the Senate the week preceding the inauguration. The service was performed according to The Book of Common Prayer, and included a number of requests taken from Psalms 144-150 as well as Scripture readings and lessons from the book of Ruth, the gospel of Saint John, and the 3rd Epistle of John.
the first inauguration - conducted under the watchful eye of those who had framed our presidency and written its Constitution - incorporated numerous religious activities and expressions. That first inauguration set the constitutional precedent for all the other inaugurations ; and the activities from that original inauguration that have been repeated in entire or part in every subsequent inauguration include : ( 1 ) the use of the Bible to administer the oath ; ( 2 ) the spiritual nature of the oath ; ( 3 ) opening requests by the president ; ( 4 ) spiritual content in the opening addresses ; ( 5 ) the president calling the people to wish or acknowledge God ; ( six ) first worship services ; and ( 7 ) clergy-led first prayers.
1. The Use of the Bible to Administer the Oath
Washington swore his oath on a Bible opened to a specific passage ; many successive presidents have done the same. For instance, in Abraham Lincoln's second opening, he selected :
Revelation 16:7 : And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are Thy judgments. Matthew 18:7 : Woe unto the world due to offences! For it must wants be that offences come, but woe to that man by whom the offence cometh!
In 1873, Ulysses S. Grant selected :
In 1881, James A. Garfield selected :
In 1881, when Chester A.

About Rick Green and David Barton

David Barton and Rick Green point us to Psalm 121:1-6 : I'll raise mine eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my assistance. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. Behold, He that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper : the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day nor the moon by night.
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